OPINION
State bill to create a budget Web site
would give taxpayers true transparency
May 7, 2008
The concept behind a measure being considered in the Pennsylvania Senate today is straight-forward. Since taxpayers and paying the bills, they should be able to see where the money goes. Senate Bill 1350 would direct the state Office of Budget to create a searchable, free Web site to allow them to do just that.
Sen. Pat Browne, the Republican from Allentown, is the bill's prime sponsor. It's a bipartisan effort, however, and the 22 original co-sponsors included Sen. Lisa Boscola, D- Northampton County and Sen. Rob Wonderling, a Republican who represents parts of Lehigh, Northampton, Berks and Montgomery counties. The bill, known as the PA Taxpayer Transparency Act, was introduced early last month.
The Taxpayer Transparency Act deserves to become law for two reasons. First, it is a logical follow-up to the state's new Open Records Act, which was adopted last year. With that action, Pennsylvania went from being a state with one of the weakest right-to-know laws in the country to one with a good, servicable law. It applies to all kinds of records kept by government bodies from the local level right up to Harrisburg.
The Open Records Act actually does not go into effect until Jan. 1, and government employees have just completed training session across the state to learn the ins and outs of complying and, we hope, cheerfully fulfilling people's requests for information. The Taxpayer Transparency Act also would take effect Jan. 1, matching the Open Records Act in both timing and spirit.
The other reason to commend Sen. Browne's bill is that it embraces modern times. One of the problems with Pennsylvania's old open records law is that it was written before the Internet and other electronic modes of communication were conceived. The Taxpayer Transparency Act is all about the Internet searches. It requires a new Web site on which people can search and aggregate information about state expenditures. That single searchability feature, as anyone who has done research on-line knows, will prove to be a powerful tool.
Exceptions in the bill are few: Single expenditures of less than $25,000 and welfare payments to individuals.
In fact, the bill sets standards for the Web site to enhance its ease of use and relevence. The budget department will not be allowed to redirect people's searches to other Web sites and it must maintain the database for 10 years. And, there are to be no charges for using the site.
Sen. Browne has noted that his bill is modeled on the Federal Funding Accountability and Transparency Act of 2006, which created a similar Web site for federal budgets and spending. Five states already have created their own Web sites and about a dozen more are working on them.
It will be refreshing to have Pennsylvania among the leaders in making government more open to citizens. The Legislature should adopt, and Gov. Rendell should sign, the Taxpayer Transparency Act.
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